Where is (are) the SharePoint 2007 content database(s)?

1
votes

The DBA's want to know which databases I'm supporting. I haven't found what database servers these are on. I have tried the following approaches:

  1. I have read that the default is the directory, C:\Program Files\MS SQL\Data, according to this blog Content Database – Changing Default Location. I didn't find an mdb file.
  2. I have looked in Sharepoint Central Administration > Application Management > Content Databases and found a content database name, but I couldn't find that in SharePoint's Central Configuration Web.config.
  3. If it's in the instance's Web.config, I haven't found it.

The DBA's think that I have a different database for each site, but I cannot confirm this. Thanks in advance for any direction you can give me.

3
sharepointsharepoint-2007
do you want to know the database server information of your content databases? – xgencoder
Yes I do. Specifically I would like to be able to tell a DBA which databases on a which SQL Server instances are from my SharePoint Apps. – Blanthor

3 Answers

2
votes

The default location you are referring to is the default location for SQL databases.

  1. Go to Sharepoint Central Administration > Application Management > Content Databases

  2. Change the Web application (on the right hand side of the screen) to the site you are looking for

  3. Click on the Database Name

  4. This page should tell you the database name and the database server. Copy both the Database server and the SQL server database name.

This should be the information the DBA's are looking for.

At a minimum you will have a Database per Web Application, but you can also have more than one, depending on how your SharePoint environment has been configure. You will see how many content databases you have per site on the "Manage Content Databases" site from step 2.

These steps show you the Content Databases, but SharePoint also uses additional databases for config and shared services. Hope this helps!

UPDATE:

  • PROD_APPNAME_Search - I think this is your serach DB. To confirm go to Central Administration > Operations > Services on Server > Windows SharePoint Services Help Search

  • PROD_APPNAME_SharePoint_Config - Config DB for sharepoint. See this in the SharePoint Products and Technologies Configuration Wizard on the SharePoint server

  • PROD_APPNAME_SSP_DB - SSP Database (should be able to confirm this
    from the step below)

  • PROD_APPNAME_SSP_Search_DB - Search Database
    (should be able to confirm this from the step below)

  • PROD_APPNAME_SSP_WEB_APP - probably the content DB for the SSP
    (should be able to see this in the steps from my original reply)

  • PROD_APPNAME_WEB_APP - content DB? (should be able to see this in the steps from my original reply)

  • PROD_APPNAME_MY_SITES - content DB? (should be able to see this in the steps from my original reply)

It looks like whoever setup your farm setup the DBs with the naming format PROD_APPNAME_, which is recommended.

To see the SSP DB's go to http://[servername]/_admin/managessp.aspx. For each SSP (you will probably only have one) click edit properties.

0
votes

You most likely have one Content Database per Web Application.

Too see them, go to http://CENTRAL_ADMIN/_admin/CNTDBADM.aspx and choose the Web Application you want the info for. When you click the Content Database name, you get details such as:

Database server  
 SERVER_NAME  

SQL Server database name  
 WSS_Content_WEBAPPDATABASE

With that info, you can trace the physical files from SQL Server, go to Properties > Files on the SQL Management Studio.

0
votes

You can tell which database server your databases are on by

  1. Opening Central Admin > Application Management > SharePoint Web Application Management > Content Databases
  2. From the Web Application drop-down choose the web application you are interested in
  3. Click the database you are interested in
  4. Take not of the Database server and SQL Server database name

You can tell where the files for this database is located by

  1. Opening SQL Server Management Studio
  2. Connect to the Database server you identified in Step 4 above
  3. Right-click the SQL Server database name you identified in Ste 4 above and choose Properties
  4. In the Database Properties windows choose Files from the Select a page section
  5. Take not of the Path and FileName for each of the files listed